help with new basement space...

[jkretz]

hello everybody, first off i'd just like to say hi (longtime lurker first time poster heh). my friend's grandparents recently passed away, and his parents inherited the house. although it is really far from campus, he and i going to be renting it from them next year. his parents are really awesome, hence it will be quite cheap, and they don't mind us doing things to the space. anyway...

the basement itself is one large room with a staircase that comes down the through the center. the floor is concrete, the walls are covered in a pressboard material, and the ceilings are actually the hardwood floor from the floor above. next to the staircase is the water heater / furnace which is the primary concern, along with the venting that runs along the ceilings. any suggestions on how to isolate he sound from these? the obvious suggestion is to turn off the heat while tracking etc.... but i'm afraid the vents / heater will still resonate and pick up while tracking. i was thinking about covering them in insulation, is this safe?

any suggestions would be helpful,
thanks,
-josh

[Edweird]

Basic Home Studio Design (The Basic Series) by Paul White has helped me plan out mine. I'm in the same situation (sort of). I'm in the process of buying a new house (my first) and I am currently in the planning stages of my own recording studio. This book (as well as these forums and a few others) has helped immensely.

[kayagum]

http://realtraps.com
http://johnlsayers.com